Insight Shows Heart in a Big Way for ASU Students

At Insight, we believe technology and education go hand in hand. One of the ways we at Insight display our Core Value of Heart is by providing students access to the technology they need in order to succeed.

You may remember last year’s event when Insight and Lenovo donated $20,000 for the purchase of 28 laptops for ASU students in the Bridging Success program for former foster youth. Well, it was such a huge success that we decided to do it again! This year, Insight and Lenovo teamed up to donate $20,000 for the purchase of 45 Lenovo Chromebooks.

Debbie Hall, IBM product manager, has been working closely with this program for the last two years and was fortunate enough to be on hand when the gifts were unveiled to the students on August 7. Debbie was there for a few hours to help the students get logged into their ASU Blackboard portals and access their class schedules. Debbie also graciously donated padded laptop sleeves to each student.

“The excitement in the room was overwhelming,” says Debbie. “One of the students said he had no idea how he was going to handle his online class this semester without a computer –but now he had one.”

The Bridging Success program for former foster youth provides the information, resources, and support they need to ensure success during their years at ASU up until graduation. The program also provides personal coaching and workshops to enhance learning and building professional skills.

According to a recent article, less than 20 percent of teenagers in foster care own a computer, compared to 90 percent of teens overall in the U.S. Studies have shown that providing laptop computers to youth of transition age result in measurable improvement in both self-esteem and academic performance.

We would like to recognize Debbie for her involvement with the Bridging Success program. She has taken this project under her wing and personified our Core Value of Heart. Insight would also like to thank Ron Harmon and the Lenovo team for their support and generous donation!

In addition, we’ve already received wonderful feedback from ASU about how the laptops are making a big difference in the students’ lives.

“The laptops show the students in a very concrete way how the community inside and outside ASU is invested in their success here,” said Jeanne Hanrahan, director of community outreach at ASU. “They are all so grateful to you – as we all are for making this wonderful gift happen again this year.”